From 11-13 August, Denver’s River North (RiNo) Art District will host the first-ever Colorado Classic professional cycling race and Velorama Festival. This is a three-day block party highlighting the Colorado Classic finish line, national music acts and a craft marketplace. The events will appeal to a broad audience.

‘Velorama Colorado aims to celebrate many of the things that make Colorado special,’ says David Koff, CEO of RPM Events Group. ‘By combining an outdoor sporting event and a block party that includes already popular events like Denver Flea and local vendors, cycling fans can explore a music festival at their bike race, and music fans can experience a professional bike race alongside their music festival. Either way, Velorama promises to be a weekend filled with world-class cycling, broadly appealing music and more.’ The Colorado Classic will be a four-day series of races that will bring together top international men and women cyclists – including Tour de France runner-up, Rigoberto Uran and Colorado’s own three-time Olympian, Taylor Phinney.

]]>promag@promag.co.nz (Promag Publishing)AmericasMon, 21 May 2018 21:41:11 +0000Win a spot on a South America educationalhttp://travelinc.co.nz/content/news/americas/item/5006-win-a-spot-on-a-south-america-educational
http://travelinc.co.nz/content/news/americas/item/5006-win-a-spot-on-a-south-america-educational

Adventure World reminds agents all bookings valued at $2,500 or more made before 31 May 2018 will be in to win a spot on its South America educational in September.

Leaving New Zealand on 5 September, the winning agent will visit Buenos Aires, Iguassu Falls and Copacabana Beach in Rio before returning to New Zealand by 16 September. Each booking gives agents another entry into the draw to win this incredible prize, which includes return airfares from Auckland, all accommodation, some meals, sightseeing and airline taxes. CLICK HERE for details.

As South America and Central America interest heats up, so does World Journeys famil contest. By booking any World Journeys South America or Central America (including Cuba) product before 30 June 2018 with a deposit, you can be in to win a FREE place on World Journeys’ 2019 South America Agent Famil, valued at over $2,000.

World Journeys marketing manager Caroline Clegg says ‘Booking higher value tours such as the 34 day Grand Tour of South America or 20 day Castro’s Cuba tour can really push an agent ahead and quickly increase their chances of winning’ says Caroline. The agent with the highest dollar value of new bookings conrmed will win the free spot. For full terms and conditions contact World Journeys 0800 117311 or CLICK HERE

California’s Six Flags Magic Mountain – in partnership with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, on behalf of DC Entertainment – has a new, extreme virtual reality experience to one of the world’s tallest and fastest drop tower rides. For a limited time, guests can experience the new DC Super Heroes Drop of Doom VR. Thrill-seekers will don special VR headsets to view the action as Superman and Wonder Woman battle their nemesis, Lex Luthor, while plunging 400 feet at speeds of up to 85 mph.

Visiting bureau representatives from Hawai’i say the timing is just right for an educational trip to remind agents of the geography of the destination – and the distance between the restless volcano of Kilauea and islands such as Maui, O’ahu (which includes Waikiki), and Kaui’i.

Teresa Cosgrave, sales manager for The Island of Hawai’i says even that island is largely unaffected by the lava flows and activity in the southern tip. ‘The Hawai’i Volcanos National Park itself is closed and that is because of earthquakes in the area and the need to check buildings and other restructures for safety. But in the rest of the island it is business as usual, both the airports are open and the volcano is 160 kilometres from the main resort areas.’ She says the volcano has been erupting for some 35 years and the latest activity tends to be a source of curiosity for many locals.

‘Of course the main priority is that the people who live around there are safe, but for tourists there is very little effect at this stage and we obviously are keeping a close eye on the situation and providing updates regularly Karishma Chown, director travel industry sales of O’ahu Visitors Bureau, says the opportunity to talk to agents last night and this morning was timely. ‘We need to be able to challenge the information flow.’ Auckland based Darragh Walshe, of Hawai’i Tourism Oceania, says ‘potentially one or two Kiwis may think there is lava flowing down the streets of Waikiki. ‘So this is an opportunity for us to reiterate the diverse nature of the neighbouring islands and continue to promote them as six unique and different destinations.

The new 216-room Hollywood hotel, Kimpton Everly Hotel. features a fifth floor pool deck with views to the Hollywood Hills, the Pacic Ocean as well as the street-level Jane Q restaurant and the Ever Bar.

Dispersal beyond Midtown is just one of the goals to grow New York City as a destination, as well as getting tourists to stay a bit longer in the normal hot spots.

‘We’re wanting to highlight all of New York’s boroughs – Manhattan, Brooklyn and even Staten Island,’ says Kristin Hellmrich of NYC & Company.

While Times Square is one of the most popular tourist spots, Hellmrich adds that the hardest part is getting people to hang around for a bit longer, instead of taking their photos and moving on.

‘We have some amazing new attractions that have opened up in Times Square, including a 3D NFL Experience,’ she says. ‘It’s about getting them to stay and explore a little, adding more depth to the experience.’

Los Angeles International Airport will be featuring biometric e-Gates in the near future.

LAX is the first location in the US to pilot this paperless, biometric boarding process.

The feature uses facial recognition technology in place of a paper boarding pass, where it captures each passenger’s photo and sends it to Customs Border Patrol for matching with the digital photo captured at the initial immigration process.

The e-Gates have been installed at Gates 152, 154 and 156 in the Tom Bradley International Terminal, and additional airlines are making plans to test the technology.

There is also a new $1.6 billion, 750,000-square-foot Midfield Satellite Concourse that will feature 12 boarding gates, LA-centric dining and shopping options, airline lounges and other guest services and amenities.

The design will complement the architecture of TBIT and feature a roof emulating an ocean wave prior to breaking on the shore.